9321019 Jasso This project is part of a program of theoretical research, with a substantive focus on social comparison theory and a methodological focus on the mathematical and statistical techniques of theoretical work. There are two overarching goals. The first goal is to extend and refine comparison theory and prepare it for empirical test, by renewed scrutiny of its postulates, continued derivation of implications for varied domains. The second goal is to systematize and sharpen the methods employed in the development of comparison theory, especially through computer simulation, so that they can be used in the development of other theories. %%% Social comparison theory is one of the chief contenders for a scientific model of how people decide whether they have been treated justly in social exchanges, and thus it offers a theoretical basis for explanations of many forms of human behavior in situations marked by competition. This abstract theoretical work lays the intellectual basis for empirical research applied to human problems. ***
